Civil War
by Frozen789
Summary: Zelda accidentally draws the Master Sword and unleashes a chain of events that drives Link into the embrace of darkness. She reluctantly attempts to redeem the Hero-and must join with a eccentric pair of Shiekah twins and an ancient foe to save a kingdom she never wanted.
1. Chapter 1

Legend of Zelda; Civil War

* * *

Dark clouds collected over Hyrule Castle as they had done many times before. Because it was nightfall the inhabitants remained blissfully unaware of what was transpiring outside. Nothing came from the rooftop guards: they were all dead. Calamity Ganon strode along the battlements, his force multiplying with his every step, a ragged dark blade in his hand.

"Too many times I've failed, not this time," he said, more to himself than anyone else.

"Seize the princess, don't fail me again," he warned his chief Wynel. "Old King Daphnes isn't able to do it; so I'll do it for him."

* * *

Deep inside the castle basement, shadowy figures flashed from torchlight to dark passageway. Guards would jerk thinking they saw something, only to slump back into the stupor that comes with standing in one location all day. On a balcony above the cavernous throne room, a shadowy figure stood up, resting against a wooden beam. Another one joined the first.

"This is too easy," a girl told the first one.

Both were masked and wrapped in dark clothing, but the leader of the two of them was slightly shorter, thinner, and had a feminine figure. The girl pulled off her headband, revealing blonde hair tightly done in a bun, and dark bronze blue eyes.

"Too easy, I don't like it," he replied.

"Where is the Princess?" the girl asked.

"Like I'd know," the boy said. "We've searched everywhere, but nothing."

"Just watch," the girl said.

"Isn't this weird, spying on someone's family meal?"

"Like we have a choice. Hyrule's future could depend on this."

Both watched as the Royal Family gathered for their evening meal. A gorgeous meal was placed on the table: cucoou meat from Lon Lon Ranch, fresh cut lemons from the coast, carrots from Hateno Village, bread from the shores of Lake Hylia, and plush coconut cake from Lumaria Village. The wafts of the food was enticing for the occupants, but for those in the ceiling, it was nothing. Shiekah were trained to resist all temptation, including food.

Slowly the Royal Family trickled in. King Daphnes, a large man with whitening hair and wearing a red robe came in first, followed by his son and heir Link, but no Zelda.

"Where is she?" the girl said. "Rowan, do you..."

"Let's not think about that right now," the one called Rowan pointed out, ruffling his black hair out of his eyes. "Keep calm Otulissa, be patient."

Otulissa averted her eyes from the Royal Family.

"Let's search the lib..."

"Go get Zelda," King Daphnes said to Liam.

"She won't come out," Prince Link said, mouth full of cuccou meat. "After that arranged marriage she refuses to talk to anyone."

"Guards, let's go get her," King Daphnes called. "No excuses this time."

"Our opening," Otulissa said to her brother.

Five minutes later...

"Zelda come out, your father commands it," one of the guards called, pounding on the door.

"Go away, I'm not hungry," came the reply through the door.

"Don't make us break down the door Princess," the largest of the guards yelled, hungry for more action.

"I'm not dressed."

Now the largest of the guards looked very hungry, making Otulissa's blood boil.

"Stand back we're..."

"Fine," Zelda relented, opening her door a crack as two shadowy figures dropped from the ceiling.

Outclassed, both went down within seconds. Otulissa reserved her heaviest kick for the largest guard; she'd seen that look the guard had before. Zelda's excitement went through the roof as she recognized the red eye on the shirts of the two figures.

"'Bout time," Zelda almost yelled before silencing herself. "When are we leaving?"

"Leaving?" Rowan asked, uncertain, looking at his sister.

"Yes leaving," Zelda said, completely missing the panicked looks on the faces of her audience. "Prefect timing. I'll go to dinner, retire early, and we'll be long gone in the dead of night."

"Wait princess, we're actually here to warn you," Otulissa protested.

"Ganon of course," Zelda said, pulling a suitcase out of her closet. She threw it open; to the Shiekahs' astonishment, it was already neatly packed with at three days' worth of clothing, food, and other suppies. She'd clearly been preparing for something like this for sometime. "I get the drill. I'm not going to stay here and wait for him to seize me like he did my ancestors. _Let's go_."

Otulissa and Rowan simply glanced at each other.

_Try again, _Rowan thought projected to his sister.

"Princess, I don't think this is a good idea," Outlissa pleaded, stepping forward. "I..."

"It's you take me with you, or I'll call _all _the guards here in the castle."

Otulissa glanced at her brother, who shook his head. She glared at him, causing him to slightly cower before her.

_Impa's orders were to warn her, not help her escape, _Rowan telepathically told his sister.

_Yes, but we are to be flexible, _Otulissa responded._ Zelda does have a point. Leaving her here is tantamount to surrendering her to Ganon on Day 1. But at the same time, we'll have a price on our heads._

_You planned the operation. What do you want to do? _

Otulissa sighed, as she normally did when things weren't going her way. She thought and thought, letting snippets of what she was thinking magically drift to her twin brother. Zelda, meanwhile, was getting antsy and her anxiety level was increasing as she watched Otulissa pace at a dizzying walk around her chambers.

_You're right, we don't have a choice. Let's allow her to come. Nobody can get through the Lost Woods._

"Fine," Otulissa conceded. "We'll take you to our hiding place."

"Where would that be?" Zelda queried, now packing dresses and corsets.

"Lost Woods."

_I'm never going back and father is never going to find me, Ganon be damned_, Zelda thought.

* * *

Zelda smiled as she played with the Kokiri children. Earlier that morning she'd burned the royal attire she'd packed for a collection of simple green dresses and tunics the Kokiri children and the Great Deku Tree had sewn for her. Now barefoot, and hair flowing freely down her back, she ran along with the small pack down the path towards the Great Deku Tree.

"Got ya," Zelda said, lifting a giggling girl high into the air.

"Good one Zelda," Malen commented, suspended a foot off the ground. "I'll bet you can't catch me again."

"Dear Princess," came the old, yet gentle and deep voice of the Great Deku Tree. "I never knew you to be such a free spirit."

"I can finally be myself," she confided, as the Kokiri children raced away. "No marriage prospects to worry about, no stuffy courtiers to please, no father, no brother, no kingdom I'll never rule."

"Be careful young lady, you still bear a great responsibility," the Deku Tree gently chided. "Are you sure the king won't let go that easily?"

"So, you aren't going to turn me in?" Zelda queried, her hand ruffling nervously behind her. As much as she hated to admit it, this was her only chance to escape the royal life.

"No, your father hasn't sent anyone to inquire, no one's visited since the Shiekah twins," the Deku Tree said. "You may stay here as long as you like."

Zelda's insides were doing a victory lap when she turned to find Otulissa and Rowan coming up to her from out of the Lost Woods, packs in their backs. It was a marvel to her how they easily navigated them each time without incident. Wynels, Bokoblins, Skull Children, and other varmints still made the crossing a dangerous place. Yet the Shiekah twins, as everyone called them, had done it at least six times since she'd arrived. Nearly identical in every feature except for gender, both were of the same thin build, sandy blond hair, height, reddish blue eyes, only Otulissa's shoulder length hair enabled anyone to tell them apart.

"Nothing yet, the manhunt for Zelda continues with no leads," Rowan said, brandishing a poster from taken from a nearby village. Zelda's image and information were on it, along with a 10,000 rupee reward for her safe return.

Zelda huffed, souring as she saw it: her father's ambition to have her married off to Gamelon's prince was still as strong as ever. She wondered if she'd ever leave these woods-or return to Hyrule while her father still lived.

"Nothing in Karkariko Village either," Otulissa said. "I checked with Elder Impa: she hasn't heard anything from her younger sister or seen Link yet. Neither have her contacts in the Gerudo Desert, Castletown, Hyrule Castle, the Army, or the Temple of Time."

"Presents!" came from the clearing.

Grinning, Otulissa and Rowan emptied out the packs they'd been carrying. Trinkets, little items Hyruleans took for granted, were greatly prized by and marveled at by the Kokiri children. The Shiekah were soon surrounded by a vast chattering mob, with the occasional child running off with a vase or children's toy.

Zelda didn't say anything, staying mum and pondering the latest developments. Behind her, in a podium in front of the Great Deku Tree, was the Master Sword, it's pommel sticking out of the ground.

"Still we wait," she said, attracting everyone attention. "I'm getting worried though. What is taking the Hero so long?"

"Be patient Princess," the Great Deku tree said in his deep voice. "Link usually takes longer than your ancestors did to recognize his mission. For all we know, he might still be in some small settlement with no knowledge of what is to transpire."

Zelda sighed; the sooner she could get her mission over with the better. She had big post-Ganon plans that involved getting out of Hyrule entirely.

"I'm starved so...uh wait, what's going on?"

Subconsciously, Zelda had brushed the hilt of the Master Sword with her left hand. She tried to walk away, her hand refused to come with her, glued to the sword's hilt.

"Oh, what the?" Zelda said, tugging. Her hand still remained firmly attached to the sword. "Deku Tree, what's going on?"

"I don't know," the Great Deku Tree confessed. "The Master Sword has never acted this way before."

Zelda didn't dare touch it with her right hand. Rowan and Otulissa came up and glanced at this mysterious phenomenon. Rowan touched the sword.

"Ouch," he said, jumping back. "It's hot. Really hot."

"Then why am I not feeling it?" Zelda asked, anxiety building in her stomach.

The Great Deku Tree watched, a remote but amazing explanation forming in his mind. Rowan and Otulissa grabbed ahold of Zelda's midsection and tugged.

"Ouch, ouch, be careful," Zelda screamed, panicking as her arm threatened to separate from her hand. This wasn't in her plans for the day. She grabbed ahold of her left hand with her right: magic seized it and began to pull it towards the hilt.

"No, no, no."

Otulissa and Rowen conjured a red shield between the blade and Zelda's hand, which was being attracted to the hilt like a magnetic. Blue light streaked out from the sword and electrified both of them, throwing them into the trees. Zelda's right hand joined her left, both now locked firmly to the pommel of the Master Sword.

"No, LET ME GO!" Zelda hysterically shouted, causing a nearby swarm of birds to fly away into the sky.

The Triforce of Wisdom on Zelda's right hand glowed brightly. Zelda lost her head: she began tugging as hard as she could. Suddenly the blade came free, Zelda toppled over into a patch grass and the Master Sword finally let go of her hands, landing in the bushes near the dazed twins.

"My, my," the Deku Tree said in a voice only himself could hear. "The Master Sword has bonded with the Triforce of Wisdom. How unusual."

Zelda got up, relieved to finally be rid of the sword. Her eyes found the podium: the sword was gone.

"Where the Master Sword?" she almost shouted, panicked.

"Here," Otulissa said.

Rowan came out of the bushes, leaves cushioning the blade.

"Zelda, you drew it," he informed her. "Which means the blade is yours."

"No it's not," Zelda firmly stated.

"We can prove it."

"How?"

Zelda instantly regretted asking the question. Otulissa seized the princess from behind, preventing her from moving. Rowan forcfully placed the sword into her hands.

"See, it not hurting you," Rowan said. "Somehow you drew it. Which means-"

"It's yours," the Great Deku Tree informed her.

Zelda's anxiety shot through the roof and she dropped the blade on the ground.

"It's not mine! I've never even taken a swordfigthing class before...its...its...Link's..."

As much as she didn't want to believe it, a part of her knew it to be true. She was the true wielder of the Bane of Evil's Blade, the Triforce of Wisdom pulsating in her body testified to her that it was now her's.

...it cant' be true...It must've let me draw it so that Link..."

A rustling in the bushes attracted everyone's attention. Her brother Prince Link was there, eyes glued to the princess, who was still holding the Master Sword. Princess Zelda tried to say something, yet words would not come. had he seen everything? She tried to explain, tried to tell it was a farce, explain why she was there, that the Master Sword was his.

"Hi.." Zelda choked out, the rest of her words dying in her voice box.

Link turned and disappeared into the mists surrounding the Great Deku Tree.

"Shiekah after him!," the Great Deku Tree barked.

Otulissa shot past the princess, almost dragging her surprised brother after her. Rowan threw her off and ran past her, both disappearing into the trees after the Hero.

"What have I done?" Zelda said, dropping to her knees.


	2. Chapter 2

**So while the last chapter was the bones, this is the meat and sets up the story. So there's a lot of talking. I promise future chapters won't be like this. Have patience and enjoy! **

Hyrule In Danger

* * *

A council was called within minutes of Link's departure. Malen, the leader of the Kokiri was present, the Great Deku Tree, Zelda, and Elder Impa, a woman in her forties with platinum blonde hair who had just arrived by teleport from Kakariko Village to visit the Princess. After thirty minutes of debate, the decision was made to wait for the Shiekah twins to return. Impa was nervous; this was the twins' first assignment after graduation from Shiekah school, but she was confident in their abilities.

An hour passed, then more, making everyone nervous. Three hours in, everyone's nerves were wearing thin. Impa was pacing, Zelda was twisting her hair in and out of a braid, Malen was rebuilding the same log cabin over and over and the Great Deku Tree was sending out feelers from his roots, trying to find them to no avail. Finally, someone emerged from the mists, three Skull Children bearing two limp bodies. To everyone's horror, it was Otulissa and Rowan. Both were a bloodied mess.

"Move, bandage them," Impa commanded, as a horde of Kokiri lifted both Shiekah from the Skull Children. "What happened?"

"They were struggling with a boy when he said some words," one of the Skull Children said. "A Wynel appeared and caught them off guard. It's dead; but we couldn't let them die."

They disappeared back into the woods.

"Hurry," Impa commanded. The Kokiri children took the twins into the navel of the Deku Tree and set them on piles of leaves.

Impa examined the wounds more closely. The Wynel's ax had done it's work, leaving deep cuts on their stomachs. Barely breathing, Impa knew she had to act fast or they might both meet the Goddesses far too soon.

"Alright Zelda, place your hands over Otulissa," Impa said, instructing the princess, demonstrating over Rowan.

"I can't do any magic," Zelda exclaimed, panicked.

"JUST DO IT!" Impa shouted.

Zelda immediately obeyed, unable to resist Impa's commands.

"Concentrate! Don't even think about it. Three, two, one-Go!"

Zelda concentrated and was floored when a large amount of magic flooded from her body. Her hands glowed yellow and the bleeding on Otulissa slowed and finally ceased. Just a little bit farthur, she thought.

"No, stop right there," Impa said, grabbing Zelda's hand, cutting off her magic flow. "You don't want to use too much. You'll faint if you do that."

"Oh," Zelda said.

Malen arrived with herbs and plant-based bandages along with the sage of the forest Saria.

"Leave them to us, the longest lived of us used to help travelers on the road to Terminia," Malen explained.

The two set to work bandaging up the Shiekah twins and sewing their wounds back together again.

"That's all we can do," Impa said, gesturing for Zelda to accompany her.

"Now what?" Zelda asked as Impa left the hollow in the middle of the Deku Tree.

"Zelda this is Karine, my second," Impa said, introducing her to another woman with white hair. "She'll be your personal guard until the twins recover."

"My personal guard?"

"Everywhere you go princess, until Ganon is defeated, you will be protected by a Shiekah. I know it might be cumbersome, but it's necessary."

"So...…"

"Another time Zelda," Impa said. "You'll have lessons in due time."

"But what about my father," Zelda said, stepping in front of the Shiekah leader and folding her arms across her chest. "He's planning to marry me to Gamelon's lame excuse of prince."

"We'll worry about that later. If there's one thing the Shiekah do best, it's protect the princess."

"After this is over, can we maybe make other arrangements that include me _not_ going back to the Castle."

"Maybe," Impa said, wondering just how troublesome this princess was going to be.

"Now what?" Zelda asked again.

Remember, it's for Hyrule, remember it's for Hyrule, Impa reminded herself.

"We wait."

* * *

Next day dawned bright and clear as to everyone's relief, the Shiekah twins had made a small recovery. Everyone then convened for the second time in a council in front of the Great Deku Tree. Zelda, Impa, heavily bandaged but conscious Otulissa and Rowan, and finally Malen of the Kokiri.

"So, let's start at the beginning?" the Great Deku Tree said. "We saw Link run into the woods. Otulissa, Rowan, what happened when you caught up to him?"

"We found Link halfway through the Lost Woods," Rowan said. "We stopped him, tried to reason with him. He kept going on about being betrayed, the sword was his...something like that. Then the Wynel appeared and I tried to hold it off."

He glanced at his sister.

"He looked at us with such hatred I've never seen before," Otulissa picked up. She shivered as she spoke, clearly somewhat traumatized. "In his eyes. I've never seen anything like that, even on the criminals we've taken down. He then said some words and a silver Wynel appeared and charged at us. We took it down, but it suddenly regained health and swiped both of us with it's ax."

"Impa I swear, it was dead," Rowan said pleadingly, wincing at having sat up too quickly. "It suddenly regained health. You should've seen it. I know I sound crazy, but I think...I think what Link said was a spell."

"A spell?" Impa said in disbelief. "Are you sure? Link has rarely done incantation spells in the past."

Everyone looked at Zelda, who flinched under so much attention.

"What?"

"You lived with him, so," Otulissa asked. "What gives?"

Zelda mulled over her answer, not sure whether it would help much.

"I don't know," she admitted. "We were close until I was ten, then my father separated us saying I needed to learn to be a good 'wife'. We just grew apart. But when I did see him on formal occasions he struck me as a bit of a dork. Goofy, not entirely serious, indifferent, but odd, he had a fascination with soldiering, and he was very eager to assume the throne. He shouted it from the rooftops at the last state dinner."

Impa and the Great Deku Tree glanced at each other darkly.

"What?" Zelda said, very worried now.

"I don't know if that's a good combination," Impa said, biting her lip. "He's twenty right?"

"Yeah. Just a year away from being of age. What, you can't possibly think that...?"

"He wasn't worthy of the Master Sword," the Great Deku Tree said.

Everyone turned to look at him in shock.

"What?" Otulissa, Malen, Zelda, Impa, and Rowan chorused.

"A true Hero would've taken the sword and joined his sister," the Great Deku Tree insisted. "But he didn't. The Master Sword sensed that and chose the only other being capable of wielding it; the Princess."

The meeting then descended into speculation about why Link ran, but nothing came close to the Deku Tree's explanation. Finally Impa broke it up. "We first need to get Link to grow up and accept his role."

She fixed her gaze on the Princess.

"You'll have to return to the castle..."

"She can't," Rowan, Otulissa, and the Deku Tree said together. Zelda had briefed all of them on her situation and they'd all previously agreed that Zelda shouldn't go anywhere near Hyrule Castle again.

"Not knowingly," Impa said. "Just long enough to talk to your brother. You're probably the only one he'll listen too."

"Okay..."

"Or maybe not," said a voice behind them.

Everyone turned around and a feeling of dread drained all of the emotion in the clearing. A man over six feet tall stood behind them, with dark beady eyes, along with blood red hair and mustache. He wore the black attire of the king of the Gerudo. Every Kokiri child knew his predecessor from the fairytales, every Shiekah drilled for hours each day to fight him, the Great Deku Tree's ancestor had been killed by him, many a princess of Hyrule had been kidnapped by him. It was Ganondorf.

"I need your help" Ganondorf said, trying to ignore the looks of alarm and panic on everyone's faces. "Especially yours Zelda. If it events continue the way it's going, you might have to end your brother's life."

All pandemonium broke loose.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Sorry it's not much. But I haven't had a lot of time on my plate to write much lately, especially when you're taking care of multiple stories at the same time._**

_Return to Hyrule Castle_

**"These are the times that try men's souls."-Thomas Paine**

* * *

_Maybe I should've knocked?_ Ganondorf thought.

In the seconds after Ganondorf made his appearance, all hell broke loose. Malen was gone, shepherding the Kokiri deep into the Lost Woods along with the twins. Karine bridal style lifted Zelda off of her log and was gone into the trees within seconds. Impa drew a massive blade and charged at Ganondorf, but the Deku Tree got there first. Great tree roots emerged from the ground and slammed the King of Thieves into a nearby rock. The roots hardened to the consistency of stone, trapping him there.

"Hey please, I mean no...hmmm..." Ganondorf was cut off as the tree roots gagged him. "Impa please...just hear me out."

"No," she said.

"Maybe you should see this," he said, clenching his right hand. The Triforce gleamed there, revealing...

"The Triforce of Courage, impossible," Impa said, stunned, the blade just inches from Ganondorf's throat.

"You see, I need to talk to all of you. Just hear me out, if you don't like what I have to say, you can slay me."

* * *

After everyone had mostly calmed one (Malen still kept Otulissa, the Kokiri, Rowan, and Zelda deep in the Lost Woods) Ganondorf finally told his story.

"Three days ago the Triforce started glowing on my hand. Gerudo travelers then brought word of the disappearance of the Princess. A council was held and several operatives, including myself were sent out to solve the mystery of why the Triforce had been shattered."

"I mean absolutely no harm. Look, a male is born into the Gerudo tribe every hundred years, over hundred have been born since and have done no harm. This mark started glowing ten days ago. I immediately set out to confer with Zelda or Link. But she was gone by the time I reached the castle."

"Why didn't you go visit Link?" the Deku Tree asked, genuinely curious.

"Because we don't trust him."

"Why did you say the Princess might have to end the Hero's life?"

"Because Link has gone off the wall. Gerudo travelers reported seeing him murder several priests at the Temple of Time. Rumors continue to float..."

"That's still no justification for asking Zelda to end the life of her brother," the Deku Tree interrupted.

"I'm sorry," Ganondorf said as genuinely as he could. "I was angry, I probably should have said that. My predecessors have honored a peace treaty signed with Hyrule, including Urbosa, who died in the service of the Royal Family. I have no intention of breaking that tradition."

No one knew what to say; this had never happened before. Even the Great Deku Tree wasn't sure whether to trust him or not.

"Besides, things have gone from bad to worse," he said. "Hyrule Castle is under martial law; guardians are patrolling the entrances. Guards are in the streets. I had to backtrack a long way along Hyrule Field to get here."

Impa's eyebrows went up; her contacts had told her the same things just hours earlier. Was Ganondorf telling the truth? Was he really a threat?

Caution for now, she thought.

"Thanks Ganondorf for the information," she said. "Release him."

The Great Deku Tree released the vines holding Ganondorf in place.

"I must go now," he said. "I have to make sure my people are safe in case the King or Link tries anything."

He left into the mists.

"Karine," Impa said to her second. "Don't bring anyone out until the Deku Tree reorients the Lost Woods."

"Yes Impa," Karine said.

"I already know what to do."

After the Deku Tree had shifted the path to the Deep Wood again, everyone came back.

"Okay, in light of what has happened, I can see only one course of action," Impa said. "We must talk to Link. He's the missing key to this puzzle. Which means?"

Zelda's heart dropped to her stomach.

"Zelda must go back. I'm sorry, but I have no choice. However, due to heightened security around the castle, we'll wait until the twins have recovered before we do anything. They know Hyrule Castle inside and out. If anyone can get the Princess in and out, they can."

* * *

Three heads poked up behind a rock face to gaze at Hyrule Castle. Just two days previous after Rowan and Otulissa had made semi-full recoveries, the Shiekah and Zelda set off. Impa and Karine set up agents around Hyrule Castle and the Gerudo Desert while Otulissa, Rowan, and Zelda prepped for the attempt to get into the castle.

"Do I really have to wear this?" Zelda had asked as two female Shiekah helped her get into a tight, black Shiekah garb.

"Yes," Otulissa retorted impatiently. "We know you're used to dresses, but trust us, do you want to be stuck in Hyrule Castle when this is over?"

"No."

"Then wear the clothes."

That settled that. Zelda couldn't see how'd they get in. Guardians, the spider-like ones that moved along the ground and the ones that flew were everywhere. Guards were on the ramparts around the castle, on alert, responding to anything that moved. She glanced at Otulissa and Rowan; both showed no sign of emotion on either of their faces.

"I have a plan," Otulissa announced. She folded out a small map on the ground. Zelda peeked and almost fainted. It was the most detailed map of Hyrule Castle she'd ever seen. Secret passageways she didn't know about were marked, every hallway, closet, and room was carefully annotated and labeled.

"How did you make this?"

"Lots of sneaking around," Rowan said in a voice that made it clear both weren't going to say anymore.

"If we take the docks here," Otulissa said, tracing her finger along a set of passageways near the back of the castle. "It'll take us directly to the Princes's quarters."

"What if he isn't there?" Zelda asked, her hands messing with her golden blonde hair again.

"We keep looking," Rowan informed her. "We don't give up."

"Good," Zelda said, anxious to get this over with as soon as possible. She stepped out behind the rock.

"No Zelda!" Otulissa shouted.

A red light shown on the Princess. Alarms went off on all of the Guardians while Rowan dragged Zelda away behind the rock again.

"Good job Princess," Otulissa crowed. "Now you did it."

"What do we do?" Zelda asked lamely.

"We run!"

The three broke into an all out run as a horde of Guardians converged where they had just been.

"This is more like it," Otulissa said three hours later, getting off of a raft. The docks were deserted as all of the loading crews had left to go home for the night.

Rowan helped Zelda disembark and then he hid the raft underneath one of the docks for later use. A door stood slightly ajar, a light shining through it.

"Alright," Otulissa said. "We open this and the secret passageway is just across the hall."

"If's someone is there?" Zelda asked, anxiety building in her stomach.

"We're dead," Rowan and Otulissa responded together.

Zelda gulped as Otulissa gingerly pushed the door open.


End file.
